1. Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates to a non-lethal weapon for firing a stabilized, rupturable paint ball ammunition. The stabilized ammunition of the present invention is a specially adapted "paint ball" and ruptures on impact, delivering an impact shock or sting to targeted personnel, along with marking paint, dyes, odor containing liquids or other materials, to provide a deterrent effect in civil peacekeeping roles.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art:
A variety of non-lethal methods and instrumentalities have been employed in civil peacekeeping efforts to control rioters while minimizing life-threatening injuries and the negative publicity resulting from such injuries, especially to women and children.
Fire hoses have been employed as instruments for riot control, but have largely been abandoned for such uses, due to the substantial potential for injury. Water cannons have also been used and, while the water cannon has advantages over the fire hose, it nevertheless has a substantial injury producing potential. Technically, the fire hose and the water cannon systems utilize a similar principal of projecting a variable intensity water jet stream to unbalance or disarm a targeted individual. Water cannons and fire hoses also have additional drawbacks in that they are large, heavy, cumbersome and normally require several persons and expensive ancillary equipment for transportation and operation.
The advantage of using the water cannon or fire hose is that specific individuals and barricades may be targeted without harming everyone in an area. A lack of ability to discriminate a targeted individual or group from others is the problem confronted with use of tear gas canisters in crowded areas. Once tear gas (or any other chemical gas deterrent) has been released into the atmosphere, it is virtually impossible to control where the gas travels and therefore it is very difficult to target particular individuals in a rioting mob. Collateral damage to innocent bystanders (e.g., journalists) is an unacceptable consequence encountered in using tear gas.
Conventional firearms may be used with elastomeric projectiles such as rubber bullets, however, such use involves a risk of lethal injury if the targeted individual is accidentally struck in the eye or the throat. The mass and velocity required for acceptable accuracy in an elastomeric projectile at useful ranges gives excessive energy at close-in ranges, thus, a policeman using elastomeric projectiles must be extremely skillful and cautious in choosing targets and cannot respond to an assailant at close range without risking serious injury. There is also a risk that the policeman, in the heat of the moment, may mistakenly insert a magazine containing the wrong kind of ammunition into a conventional firearm, thus leading to a catastrophic loss of life.
Use of conventional fire arms and ammunition in riot control has been demonstrated to have terrible and long-lasting consequences, both for the victims of the shooting and for the agency employing such deadly force. History records that the demonstrators at Kent State University in Ohio and in Tienanmen Square in Beijing were subdued with deadly force in what now are regarded as senseless tragedies. The use of deadly force, such as rifle or pistol fire from conventional weapons, has therefore been deemed an unacceptable response to civil disobedience.
There has been a long felt need, then, for a non-lethal weapon which may be deployed safely and efficiently, and which overcomes the problems associated with the prior art.